Welcome to the Battle

Just after Christmas, Newsweek magazine unveiled an unvarnished and unsubstantiated attack against evangelical Christianity. This article was high profile and largely unresearched by a writer who does financial columns for Vanity Fair. The article itself was an insult to any thinking reader, Christian or non-Christian. It was poorly researched, used vitriolic and cartoonish images (“Christians bow before stone images of the Ten Commandments”) and failed to cite those who were most capable of responding to the ridiculous allegations in the article.

I will not spend time here responding to the ludicrous charges. I will take a moment to warn of an impending and tightening circle of innuendo, false charges, and outright attacks against those who truly claim and follow the Lamb of God. That this article was released near Christmas was of highest offense, especially knowing that the same magazine would never consider an outright criticism of the Koran at the outset of Ramadan, even in light of the recent terroristic attack against a French newspaper office.

This is not an effort to gain sympathy or pity for our circumstance in evangelical Christianity. We are going to continue to be marginalized in our culture, especially as issues such as the legitimizing of gay marriage continue to confront us and require a response and we come down on the incorrect side of the issue.

All of this simply confirms what Jesus said. “The servant is not above his master. If they hated me, they will also hate you.” The presence and voice of evangelical Christians in our culture will continue to irritate and provoke those who are of this world. We must expect it, not be surprised by it, and not hate those who spitefully speak against us and misuse and misquote us.

We must pray for them. We must (Jesus’ words) “BLESS THEM.” We must love them. And above all, we must “be ready to give an answer to any who ask for a reason for the hope that is in us.”